Monday, January 14, 2008

GRAVLAX - SALT CURED SALMON

For New Year's eve, I wanted to make something which would be stressless, not finicky/fussy at all, cheap and yet very tasty as well as festive. That's how I fell into that gorgeous Marcus Samuelsson recipe...

In fact, I have been meaning to taste "Gravelax" for some time, but somehow never got to make it. As I love smoked salmon, I was pretty sure that I would adore it's Scandinavian close cousin.

"Gravlax" or "Gravadlax" is salt-cured raw salmon (it is NEVER smoked) which is rubbed with a mixture of sugar, salt, pepper and fresh dill. It is generally served as apperitive and accompanied by a dill-mustard sauce named "Hovmästarsås". "Lax" means "salmon" and "grav" literally means "grave" or "whole in the ground". At the origin, during Medieval times, "Gravlax" was in fact salmon buried into the ground... This delicacy can be found in Sweden and Denmark ("Gravlax/Gravadlax"), Finland ("Graavilohi"), Norway ("Gravlaks") as well as in Iceland ("Graflax").

If you love raw salmon, then "Gravlax" might interest you. It's flavor is maybe less imposing than smoked salmon, but, on the other hand, it is more delicate, refined and somehow more complex.

"Gravlax" has a slightly sweet and salty taste with peppery notes and glorious dill connotations. There is no hint of fishiness here, just the pure and faint aromas of good fresh salmon! Through the curing process, the fish's flesh loses a lot of it's water and becomes firmer, yet very silky smooth, velvety and buttery. It's melt-in-your mouth, unctuous texture is incredible and it's color is glorious! "Gravlax" is very similar to smoked salmon (minus the smokey taste), although I would say that it is far moister...

This elegant recipe is fantastic and very impressive! You will love it and so will your guests!

Method for the fish:1. Mix together the salt, sugar, and peppercorns in a small bowl.2. Rub a handful of the mixture on both sides of the salmon, place it in a shallow dish, and sprinkle with the remaining salt mixture.3. Cover the salmon with the dill, and allow to stand in a cool spot (but not in the refrigerator) for six hours.4. Cover with plastic wrap, transfer to the refrigerator, and allow to curefor 36 hours.5. Wipe the seasonings from the salmon with a paper towel.6. Cut the gravlax on the bias into thin slices, or leave whole for your guests to slice.

Method for the mustard sauce:7. Combine the mustards, sugar, vinegar, salt, pepper, and coffee in a blender.8. With the machine running, gradually add the oil in a very slow, steady stream, until the mixture is thick and creamy.9. Transfer the sauce to a bowl, and stir in the dill.10. Cover and refrigerate for at least 4 hours, or overnight to allow the flavors to mingle.11. Serve with the salmon.

Remarks:If you don't have "Honey Mustard" at home, then take 1 1/2 tablespoons "Mild Mustard" and add 1/2 tablespoon runny honey.In case you can't find any "Dijon Mustard" (1 Tbs), then use the same quantity "Mild Mustard" and add 1/2-3/4 teaspoon powdered "English Mustard" (Colman's).Instead of using canola oil or grapeseed oil, you can very well use sunflower oil.The gravlax will keep up to a week in the refrigerator if it's well-wrapped in foil and plastic.You can also keep it in the freezer for up to two months.The sauce can be prepared up to one day ahead and keeps easily up to a week in the refrigerator.For more infos concerning the method, click here.

I've great admiration for anyone who makes their own graavilohi from the beginning! Here in Finland we always buy ours ready-made. I must admit, however, that I'm not a great fan of this type of salmon. I prefer mine smoked. The mustard sauce on the other hand...that I will definitely try to make! By the way, thanks for keeping your blog in both English and French. I'm learning some French this way!

I am so glad you posted this in English, especially since I am in the minority of English commenters. My boyfriend is Swedish and when we visited his family, I spent a whole month eating this. I loved it and ate so much of it, I could hardly eat salmon for another year afterwards. But now I am glad I can try it again!

A quick question: I made the recipe with a much smaller fillet and accidentally left it out for 7 hours rather than 6. It is now marinating in the refrigerator as we speak but I was wondering if any of that will impact my fish negatively. Thanks!

MELANIE: Thanks for the kind comment and for passing by!My blog is meant to be in English. In fact, I started to translate my recipes in French only very lately!...Sweden must be a lovely place to visit and the foods there are gorgeous! I'm glad you'll now be able to make Gravelax at home thanks to my recipe... If you leave it to marinade for too long, the salt will tend to dry your fish. It will have no impact on the taste, but more on the texture (less smooth)...Cheers!